Interstate '76

Interstate '76
Cover art
Developer(s)	Activision
Publisher(s)	Activision
Director(s)	Sean Vesce
Producer(s)	Scott Krager
Designer(s)	Zachary Norman
Programmer(s)	Dan Stanfill
Artist(s)	Rick Glenn
Writer(s)	Zachary Norman
Composer(s)	Arion Salazar
Engine	MechWarrior 2
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Release date(s)	NA 28 March 1997
Genre(s)	Vehicular combat
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Interstate '76 is a vehicular combat video game for Windows. It was developed and published by Activision and released on 28 March 1997.

Gameplay

A battle in the game between Groove Champion's Picard Piranha (orange) and a Phaedra Rattler.

There are four play modes available in the game: the "T.R.I.P." (an acronym for "Total Recreational Interactive Production"), which follows the game's protagonists in an episodic story; "Multi Melee", an on-line deathmatch version of the game; "Auto Melee", a deathmatch with computer-driven cars; and "Scenarios", short free-standing adventures featuring the game's protagonists. The primary difference between the scenarios and the T.R.I.P., length of play aside, is that the player has a much broader choice of vehicles in the scenario mode, while the player is limited to only one car during most of the T.R.I.P. mode. The game's vehicles are faithful reproductions of various cars and trucks from the era, both in appearance and driving characteristics, though the names have been changed.

The game is based on the engine used for Activision's MechWarrior 2: 31st Century Combat, and requires a fair amount of strategy through the course of the game, as the player must balance the vehicle's armor and weapon load-outs appropriately in order to successfully complete the various missions. In the game's story mode, the player must also manage and repair equipment salvaged from the wrecks of opponents.

Synopsis

The game is set in the Southwestern United States in an alternate history of the year 1976, during a prolonged oil crisis. All the in-game vehicles in Interstate '76 are based on real cars, including many period American muscle cars.

Whilst set in an alternative timeline, in which the 1973 oil crisis is still ongoing, the game progresses through real towns and locations in the south-western United States including Lubbock, Seagraves, Seminole and Pecos in Texas and Roswell and Carlsbad in New Mexico. The game's final showdown takes place at Fort Davis, Texas.

Plot

The game focuses on the daring exploits of Groove Champion, his partner Taurus, and their mechanic, Skeeter. A powerful but shadowy figure is recruiting autovillains (also known as "creepers") from around the country for a private army. Similarly, civilians take up vigilantism to make up for the openly corrupt police force, and begin driving weaponized vehicles of their own so as to maintain order. Groove's sister, Jade, and Taurus are investigating the movements of the army when, on the night of July 3, 1976, Jade Champion is murdered outside Lubbock, Texas. Taurus recruits a reluctant Groove to the cause, with Groove operating Jade's heavily armed Picard Piranha. The game follows Groove and Taurus' quest for revenge and the truth.

Reception

Interstate '76
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings 73.29% Metacritic 80 Review scores Publication Score Game Revolution B+[1] GameSpot 8.9/10[2] PC Gamer (US) 93%[3] The Adrenaline Vault [4] Entertainment Weekly A-[5]

Legacy

Interstate '76 spawned a prequel/stand-alone expansion pack, Nitro Pack (known as Interstate '76: Nitro Riders in some territories), and a direct sequel, Interstate '82, as well as the Vigilante 8 spin-off series for video game consoles. A graphically enhanced version of the original game, Interstate '76: Gold Edition, was also released. The Gold Edition was later bundled with the Nitro Pack expansion as The Interstate '76 Arsenal. On 18 February 2010 Good Old Games released a downloadable version of The Interstate '76 Arsenal which is playable on modern operating systems and hardware.^[6]

The film rights to the game were acquired in March 1998 by 20th Century Fox and Davis Entertainment.^[7] However, with no further reports since then, the project has likely been consigned to development hell.

References

External links

• Interstate '76 at Allgame
• Interstate '76 at GameSpot
• Interstate '76 at IGN
• Interstate '76 at the Internet Movie Database
• Interstate '76 at Metacritic
• Interstate '76 at MobyGames
• Arion Salazar discography at MusicBrainz